One regular board meeting should be held monthly at the district’s administrative headquarters or at the nearest practical location, with consideration given to persons with disabilities. Regular meetings are those meetings set at the July organizational meeting. Special meetings are any other meetings called throughout the year.
The Public Meetings Law requires that reasonable notice of time and place be given for all regular board meetings. (Board Policy BDDA)
Twenty-four-hour notice is required for special meetings, and appropriate notice is required for emergency meetings.
Executive session notice must cite the section and subsection of the statutory authorization for the executive session.
Any meeting notice must list the principal subjects to be considered at the meeting and list the subjects anticipated for consideration.
OSBA has three recommendations about meeting notices:
Make sure to give notice when you plan executive sessions in advance. Typically, this means listing the executive session on the regular board meeting agenda or by issuing a meeting notice if the sole purpose of the meeting is for an executive session. OSBA recommends at least 24 hours’ notice.
When an unexpected event or topic arises during a regular board meeting — for instance, a personnel issue that should not be discussed in open session — the chair may call an executive session without notice or announce that the subject in question is not an appropriate topic for the regular board meeting and that the board will meet in executive session to discuss it following a break or at the end of the regular meeting. The chair may also call an immediate executive session, if circumstances warrant that approach.
Don’t schedule an executive session for every regular board meeting as a “placeholder” in case you need one. This can give the impression that you intend to regularly meet in private.
Paid advertising to notify the public about board meetings is not required by law. You can publicize regular meetings by sending notices to local news media and to a mailing list of people who have indicated they want to receive notice (e.g., committee members, parents, and community and business leaders). You must send notice to anyone who requests it.
